If I Were Like Frank
by Shojobaby
Summary: A collection of short stories on what certain characters would do if they were in Frank's shoes.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello everybody! Okay, this is my first time writing fanfiction for the Hardy boys, and I would reall appreciate**_** positive**_** feedback and **_**constructive**_**critisism.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Hardy Boys or any part of the Hardy Boys franchise.**

If I Were Like Frank...

I, Joe Hardy, detective extraordinaire, have a brother. His name is Mr. Sensible, or as he is more commonly known, Frank Hardy. My sidekick.

Now, please understand. I love Frank; he's one of the greatest guys I know. However, he seems to be under the impression that he's the leader of our duo. I don't know where he got that idea ( delusional, maybe?), but he has it.

And, since he's got that absurd idea, he seems to always approach problems calmly; which makes me look, well, impulsive! And I am totally not; impulsive, I mean. Seriously, I think things through, just after I've already done it ( whatever _it _is). After all, hindsight _is_ twenty-twenty.

The worst part, however, is that Frank's being the levelheaded one has left me thinking...about what I would do...if I were like him.

If I were like Frank, I would totally be the sensible one!

_" Joe, quick! Let's tail that guy!" Frank said, pointing to the man who had just crossed the street, clutching a suspicious looking package to his chest._

_" Frank, we don't even know if he's in with the thieves! He could just be conducting a business deal!" I replied._

_Frank stared after the guy. " Monkey business, I'll bet!"_

_A woman suddenly cried out, "Stop, thief! Help!"_

_Without hesitation, Frank leaped off the curb and dashed across the street; luckily, traffic was very low. _

_I followed, of course. The strange man had quickened his steps, and he turned to glance over his shoulder. Seeing Frank charging after him, the man let out a yelp and took off running. Frank was right at the guy's heels as they both turned down a dingy alley._

_Bursting onto the scene, I saw that Frank had already tackeled the guy and was wrestling with him to get the allegedly stolen package!_

_I was about to leap to my brothers aid when a second man emerged from the shadows. I shifted into a judo stance._

_The man came toward me. He was tall, with broad shoulders and red hair. He also had a mustache. The way he walked seemed very familiar._

_" Joseph Hardy, would you like to explain what exactly you and your brother are doing?" he asked._

_I was totally shocked. Immediately abandoning my judo posture, I tried to explain the past fifteen minutes to my father before I died of embarrassment._

_At the sound of Dad's voice, Frank had stopped rolling around with the guy and had hauled the poor man up to his feet._

_" Dad!" he began. " Look! We saw this guy carrying a package, and we figured he stole it..."_

_" You figured he stole it." I interrupted._

_" And we tried to get it back... here it is." Frank held up the parcel that he wrenched from the scared, nervous-looking man._

_" Mr. Hardy," the man said, " I was bringing the papers to you; when this guy jumped me!"_

_The smile vanished from Frank's face. He realized the same thing I had when I first saw Dad. The man was one of our dad's informers!_

_" Son," Dad said to me, " take you brother home. Now."_

_Later, as Frank and I drove home, I had to seriously fight the urge to shout ' I told you so!' I figured Frank was already horrified at his HUGE mistake, there was no need to torment him more._

Yeah, life would be something like that.


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, I'm back with the next chapter. I know you're not here to read an author's note, so, with out further ado...**

If I Were Like Frank

Hi, my name is Callie Shaw. I am a typical American, teenage girl, with a not-so-typical boyfriend.

You see, he's always running off, putting some criminal in jail with that brother of his (Joe is a whole 'nother story.); and solving dangerous mysteries. I'm proud of him, of course; but when his case interferes with our time together... I just can't help feeling angry!

It's not that I don't want him to be happy, and solving mysteries makes him very happy; but I need some attention! I can't stand those times when we'll be out to dinner, and he'll suddenly spot a criminal and be like " 'Scuse me for just one second, Callie!" Then he runs off, out into the night to track down his suspect. And me? I wait for an hour; then I call up Chet and Iola to see if they can give a ride home.

I some times wonder what things would be like if the tables were turned. If I was the detective and he was the devoted boyfriend!

_Frank and I were sitting in the homey restaurant, just finishing our lunch, when Frank suddenly grasped my hand. I looked at him adoringly, and he gazed soulfully into my eyes. He was about to say something, when-_

_" Oh!" I gasped. " Frank, don't look now, but that's the guy I've been trailing! I'll be right back!" I shot out of my seat like a rocket, leaving Frank behind to gape after me._

_Someone who knew me, probably from seeing my picture in connection with some case, called out a cheery " Hello!" from my left._

_The gang boss swang around, saw me, and bolted out of the restaurant!_

_I was hot on his heels, yelling to Frank not to worry, but to call my parents and let them know what I was doing. The suspect turned down a side a street, where I knew a cop would be patrolling._

_" Help! Officer! I need a policeman!" I cried._

_Curious onlookers stopped to, well, on look, as the cop came running up, slamming right into the criminal and making him fall to the ground. The guy blacked out._

_I quickly told the officer about the whole case, then I demanded the criminal's arrest. After the cop had the bad guy in the patrol car and had driven away, I walked back to the restaurant, where Frank was still waiting._

_" I called your house. Your mom answered. She said that if you weren't back in ten minutes I should track you down."_

_Glancing at my watch, I saw that the entire ordeal had only taken eight minutes._

_Frank pulled out my chair for me. " Tell me all about it."_

_" I will, but first, you're not angry with me? You know, for running out like that?"_

_" Oh...no. Not a bit!"_

_I sighed happily. " Frank, you're a trouper!"_

I could get used to that. In, fact, there was an article in the paper about a girl who does that. What was her name? Nancy... something.


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay, third chapter, ready to go! Enjoy.**

If I Were Like Frank

Hello there! My name's Chet Morton. Are you new to Bayport? Yes? Well, let me tell you a few things about our fair city.

First thing you need to know is where to get help if something bad, or should I say... mysterious, happens. Call the Hardy boys. 'Who are they,' you ask? They're only the sons of ace detective Fenton Hardy, that's who they are. In fact, they are a couple of aces themselves.

They happen to be friends of mine, so I can testify to their smarts when in comes to cracking a case. How well do we know each other, huh? Well enough for me to get dragged into... I-I mean, well enough for me to assist them in their work.

Do I like helping them out? Well, I'm not too fond of dangerous situations; but there have been times when I've provided them with valuable clues. I remember one time, when I was in one heck of a mess; and I had picked up on a clue.

That situation tested my mental ability to the utmost. I kept asking myself what I would do if I were Frank; he's the oldest Hardy brother...

_Okay, Chet. Be calm and think. Two thugs just followed you from the movies and cornered you in an alley, now what?_

_Good question. What's the answer?_

_" Alright, fatso," the slightly less thuggish of the two thugs said, " we've got a little message for the Hardy boys, and you're gonna deliver."_

_Shaking, Chet forced himself to answer. " Oh, that's not too bad. Just give me the message and I'll be on my merry way!"_

_Like it would really be that simple!_

_The other thug snorted. " It's not gonna be so easy, boy. The Hardys have started a dangerous game by messing with us, and we play for high stakes or no stakes at all. They need to know that."_

_Chet, you can't fight your way out, not with these two. Chet thought back to something Frank had said way back in fifth grade. _

_" We'll have to think our way out, you guys." Yeah, Frank was right._

_Chet thought through his situation just like Frank would have. Get as close to the mouth of the alley as possible, then bolt! _

_One of the thugs pulled a pistol. Bolting did __not__ seem like a good idea anymore._

_" __Now, we're just gonna rough you up a bit, keep you with us for a while, then set you loose. That's our message to the Hiccup brothers. No need for a return address; they'll know who it's from."_

_The guy with the gun moved in on Chet. " You don't scream; I don't shoot. Get it?"_

_Chet gulped down his fear as a plan formed in his head. " Got it."_

_" Good. See, you won't mind spending a few hours with us." The big guy swang his arm at Chet. The blow would have knocked Chet semi-unconscious._

_It would have, but Chet's plan stood in the way. Dodging the punch, Chet grasped the guy's gun arm and bore down, hard._

_An involuntary screech of pain ripped from the man's throat as Chet planted most of his ample weight on the arm. The gun fell and Chet kicked it into a far corner of the alley. It landed among some trash. The other thug, falling into Chet's trap, went after it._

_Giving the guy in his grasp a solid smack to the jaw and releasing the now limp arm, Chet made a mad dash for the mouth of the alley. His car was across the street, in front of an ice cream parlor. Although his stomach growled at the thought of creamy concoctions, Chet went straight for his car._

_Of, course, when he heard the first shot ring out from behind him, he dropped to the ground and rolled every which way. Until he had rolled to the driver's side of his jalopy._

_Yes! He pulled himself into the drivers seat, gunned the motor, and tore off down the avenue._

_" I've got to warn Frank and Joe!" he thought. " And I should thank Frank. If I hadn't been my hanging hanging out with him for all these years and knowing his mind set; I would be... I would be..."_

_Just the thought of what could have happened made Chet slam on the brakes for a second. It also made him crave the comfort of his mom's double chocolate chunk cookies._

And that's what happened. I told Frank and Joe, and they ended up breaking the whole crime ring wide open. And that led them into _another_ case, but that's a different story.


End file.
